Kenji Otonari and Shota Takeda are scheduled to pitch in an exhibition game against Hanshin on March 3. The two worked out at the Saitozaki training facilities on Monday. Source: Nikkan Sports 3/2/2015

New jumbotrons and an improved secondary scoreboard were unveiled at Sapporo Dome on Monday. A larger jumbotron was installed in right and a new jumbotron was added in left. The secondary infield scoreboard was replaced with a larger unit. Source: official release ... The upgrades cost about 820 million yen. Source: Sponichi 3/2/2015

Orix Buffaloes

Takahiro Matsuba will pitch in an exhibition game against Chunichi on March 4. Source: Daily Sports 3/2/2015

First round draft pick Sachiya Yamasaki will spend some time making adjustments at Ni-gun. Source: Nikkan Sports 3/2/2015

Chiba Lotte Marines

Hideaki Wakui could start an exhibition game against Chunichi on March 11 and pitch five innings. Source: Sponichi 3/2/2015 ... Another possibility is an exhibition game against Yokohama on March 10. Source: Daily Sports 3/2/2015

Tsutomu Ito told reporters on March 1 that he selected pitchers for the first six games of the season and already spoke to each about their roles. The six most likely include Hideaki Wakui, Ayumu Ishikawa, and Yuki Karakawa. The remaining three slots could go to Takahiro Fujioka, Dae-Eun Rhee, and Yuta Kimura. Source: Sanspo 3/2/2015

Seibu Lions

Takeya Nakamura and Hideto Asamura are set to to play in an exhibition game against Hanshin at Koshien on March 6. Both players are making their way back from off-season surgeries. Source: Sanspo 3/2/2015

Takayuki Kishi's practice game start against Hanshin on March 1 was rained out. He is now slated to start an exhibition game against Yokohama on March 4 and pitch one inning. Source: Sponichi 3/2/2015

Of the six games the Lions had scheduled through to March 1 (exhibition and practice), three were canceled because of rain: exhibition game against Softbank on February 22, practice game against Softbank on February 26, practice game against Hanshin on March 1. Source: Sponichi 3/2/2015, Sports Hochi 3/2/2015

First round draft pick Kona Takahashi attended his high school graduation on Monday. His classmates tossed him into the air three times. Source: Nikkan Sports 3/2/2015

Daisuke Matsuzaka could make his first start of the regular season during the Orix series that begins on March 31. Tadashi Settsu and Kenichi Nakata will most likely get the first two starts of the regular season, with Matsuzaka and Kenji Otonari getting starts during the Orix series. The remaining two starts are still up for grabs. Source: Sports Hochi 2/27/2015

The Fighters closed out general practices at Nago camp on Friday -- they still have a practice game against Hiroshima on Saturday. Source: Sponichi 2/27/2015

Shohei Otani will most likely start three exhibition games next month. March 3 against Yomiuri at Sapporo Dome, March 11 against Yokohama at Kamagaya, and March 18 against Hiroshima at Sapporo Dome. Source: Daily Sports 2/27/2015, Sponichi 2/27/2015

Second round draft pick Eisuke Tanaka will be returning to Kyoto for three days, beginning on March 4, to prepare for and present his graduation thesis. He was slated to pitch against Orix on the 26th, but the practice game was rained out. His next start is unscheduled. Lotte will set a date once they check on his condition when he rejoins the team on March 7. Source: Daily Sports 2/27/2015, Sports Hochi 2/27/2015, Sponichi 2/27/2015

Rakuten Eagles

Takaaki Yokoyama is set to start an exhibition game against Softbank at YafuOku Dome on the 28th. Source: Sports Hochi 2/27/2015

Fifth round draft pick Takahiro Irino's start against Doosan was rained out on the 26th. He is now slated to start an exhibition game against Softbank at YafuOku Dome on March 1. Source: Sponichi 2/27/2015, Nikkan Sports 2/27/2015

Pitching coach Shujo Yoshida helped Kodai Hamaya work on his change-up on the team's off day on Friday. Source: Sports Hochi 2/27/2015

Hiromoto Okubo is planning to fill his four foreign player roster slots with two position players and two pitchers. Rakuten has seven foreign players on the seventy-man roster: Gaby Sanchez, Zelous Wheeler, Kam Mickolio, Rhiner Cruz, Kenny Ray, Jim Heuser, and the soon-to-be-added Wily Mo Pena. Source: Daily Sports 2/27/2015

Okubo would like a number five hitter that knows how to run the bases. Speed is a plus, but not necessarily a deciding factor. He has so far tried players like Shintaro Masuda, Hiroaki Shimauchi, and Takero Okajima. Source: Sports Hochi 2/27/2015

Tadashi Settsu may have won the opening day start. Kimiyasu Kudo did not drop a specific name, but did mention that he already spoke to the pitcher and that he made his decision based on camp performance and bullpen sessions. Settsu will most likely pitch in four games (about twenty innings) before the start of the regular season. Source: Daily Sports 2/26/2015

Shohei Otani's next outing will likely come in an exhibition game against Yomiuri at Sapporo Dome on March 3. Source: Nikkan Sports 2/26/2015

First round draft pick Kohei Arihara could pitch in an Eastern League game against Seibu at Kamagaya on March 21. Source: Nikkan Sports 2/26/2015

The Fighters announced that they will be holding a retirement ceremony for assistant general manager Masao Kida before an exhibition game against the Yomiuri Giants on March 4. Source: official announcement

Seibu Lions

Fumiya Nishiguchi is set to start a practice game against Orix on the 27th and pitch three innings. Source: Sanspo 2/26/2015

Makoto Aiuchi is slated to pitch in a game on the 27th. Makoto gave up seven runs over four inning during his last outing. His next appearance will determine whether or not he stays or gets demoted to Ni-gun. Source: Nikkan Sports 2/26/2015

Fumiya Nishiguchi, Atsushi Okamoto, Naoto Watanabe, and Hichori Morimoto will be sent to A camp on the 27th. Masatoshi Okada, Yuji Onizaki, Anthony Seratelli, and Masato Kumashiro will be sent to B camp on the 28th. Chun-Lin Kuo, Esmerling Vasquez, Yosuke Okamoto, Miguel Mejia, and Wade LeBlanc were sent back to Tokyo from Miyazaki on the 26th. Hideto Asamura, Takeya Nakamura, and Ernesto Mejia were also sent back to Tokyo from Kochi. Source: official announcement

Rakuten Eagles

Satoshi Nagai (three runs over three innings), Kazutomo Aihara (five runs over two innings), and Keiji Uezono (three runs over three innings) will be sent down to Ni-gun for additional work after lackluster performances during a practice game against Orix on the 25th. Source: Daily Sports 2/26/2015

Daisuke Matsuzaka is currently slated to start an exhibition game against Hanshin at Koshien on March 4 and pitch two to three innings. The last time he pitched at Koshien was against Hanshin on June 9, 2006. Source: Daily Sports 2/25/2015, Sponichi 2/25/2015

Dae-Eun Rhee's next outing could come on either February 28 or March 1 (exhibition games against Chunichi at Nagoya Dome). He will pitch about three innings. Source: Sponichi 2/25/2015

Rakuten Eagles

The Eagles set a new franchise record when they sold out all their home opener tickets in three hours and twenty minutes on Wednesday. Tickets to the homer opener on March 31 against Seibu went on sale at 10:00am and were sold out by 1:20pm. The previous record of seven hours was set in 2012. Source: official announcement